Another bomb found

Authorities say suspects may have had help in planning massacre

By Matt Sebastian
Camera Staff Writer

U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno implored the surviving students of this week's Columbine High School massacre to "stand tall" Thursday, saying the grieving teens "have inspired a nation."

"We cannot and we must not become complacent," Reno said after meeting with students and victims' families. "We do not have to accept this violence."

With the investigation of Tuesday's schoolyard slaying of 15 people in its third day, Jefferson County sheriff's officials more than ever believe that suspects Eric Harris, 18, and Dylan Klebold, 17, may have had help with their shooting and bombing spree.

"We have no concrete evidence that more than two were involved," District Attorney Dave Thomas said. "But it is obvious from the crime scene that it would have been difficult for these two individuals to do this alone."

That belief grew firmer Thursday morning when investigators found another unexploded bomb inside the school's kitchen. It was the biggest yet — a device fashioned from a 20-pound propane tank, a one- or two-gallon gas can and some wiring.

Had it gone off, sheriff's Sgt. Jim Parr speculated, "It would have been devastating."

Police say they believe that Harris and Klebold — armed with four guns and a dozen homemade bombs — walked into Columbine at 11:19 a.m. Tuesday and killed 12 classmates and a teacher before apparently taking their own lives. Twelve more explosive devices were found in the suspects' vehicles.

Officials said 28 other people were transported to seven area hospitals.

"It is a devastating crime scene," the district attorney said. "My 50 years on this earth did not prepare me for this. ... I can only describe it as a war zone."

The question on everyone's lips Thursday remained the same — why? Officials said they still know no motive for the killing spree, although they confirmed that some sort of note was found among some paperwork seized from one of the two suspects.

"I have seen some writings, but I don't know when those were authored," Thomas said, characterizing the prose as typewritten and perhaps from a journal. "I wouldn't necessarily call it a suicide note per se."

Investigators also confirmed that a videotape was seized from the home of one of the shooters.

Columbine student Ben Oakley said Harris and Klebold last semester made a film in their video production class showing them "with their fake guns walking through the halls, shooting jocks."

"Later they animated in the blood," Oakley said. Police wouldn't comment on the videotape seized this week.

Although police have no firm evidence of accomplices or a third shooter — whom some witnesses reportedly saw — they say they believe some of Harris and Klebold's friends may have known of their plans.

"There had been some information exchanged prior to the 20th about what was going on," Thomas said.

No one has been arrested in connection with the rampage, although some of the suspects' friends were detained for questioning Tuesday. Police are interviewing current and former members of the so-called Trench Coat Mafia, the clique that Harris and Klebold belonged to.

Detectives also have interviewed the parents of both suspects. Sheriff's spokesman Steve Davis said both sets of parents have been cooperative, although they have retained attorneys.

The homes of both Klebold and Harris also have been searched. Warrants for both searches have been sealed by a judge, although a hearing will be held today to determine whether to keep the documents under wraps.

At the school, 60 to 75 investigators remained in the bullet-scarred building Thursday, collecting evidence, a process that will last several more days. The team pulled out about 5 p.m. to rest for the night.

Sheriff's representatives spent much of the day defending their actions, as questions arose about the timing of the SWAT entry into the occupied school on Tuesday and the discovery Thursday of another bomb.

"It was not two hours before a SWAT team went in," Davis said, pointing out that one of his deputies was in the school when the shooting started. Several other officers responded within three minutes, and the first SWAT team was in the building in about 20 minutes, Davis said.

Efforts were slowed down by uncertainties about what was happening. A full-scale SWAT entry didn't occur until about 1 p.m., about a half hour after the shooting stopped.

"They had no knowledge of how the suspects were, where they were or how they were dressed," Davis said.

As for the discovery of a new bomb, Barr said the hallways are littered with hundreds of backpacks — each, to police, possibly carrying an explosive.

"There were 2,000 kids in this school that ran out in a panic," Barr said. "Some of them ran out of their shoes."

The search for explosives continues slowly, Davis said, and there is no guarantee investigators won't find more.

On Thursday, students again congregated at Robert F. Clement Park, a few blocks from the school, to mourn their loss.

"I feel like I need to be here," said Josh Nielsen, 17, a Columbine junior. "I can't be away from here."

At about 11 a.m., a group of Westminster High School students arrived at the park, bearing flowers for the several makeshift memorials honoring the dead.

"I didn't know anyone personally from Columbine," student body president Mike Bredenberger said, "but we can certainly feel for them."

Even professional soldiers were moved by the slaughter. A group of infantrymen traveled from Ft. Carson on Thursday to pay their respects.

"We feel like we're part of the community, also," Sgt. Rick Jelen said.

Reno's visit provided a morale boost to the dozens of investigators still processing the massive crime scene, and it was a solace to survivors and the victims' families.

"She said, 'I'm here to listen to the kids,' " said Mary Sautter, the mother of a Columbine student, after meeting with the attorney general at the Light of the World Catholic Church.

Later in the day, Reno appeared at the Jefferson County District Attorney's Office and pledged to seek an end to school violence. But, she cautioned, leaders must "shape remedies that fit the facts."

"The cult of violence, I think, is a notion that has come to accept that violence too often is a way of life."

The attorney general addressed most of her remarks to the students of Columbine High.

"The first thing you're touched by as you go to a community meeting is the students' eyes," Reno said. "They're grieving but they're brave. ... They're an inspiration."

"My message to them is, stand tall."

Camera Staff Writer Jason Gewirtz contributed to this report.